This invention relates generally to swing seats. More particularly, this invention relates to a swing seat for a child that includes a bar that both secures the child in the seat and is capable of being moved to a second position in order to easily place the child in the seat or remove the child from the seat.
Children""s swing seats are well known in the toy industry. Many such seats include a standard children""s chair and a T-bar. The T-bar couples at least one end to the front portion of the seat and is used to secure the child in place after he or she is placed into the seat. Although such arrangements are moderately effective, they also have a number of drawbacks. For example, some swing seats have a T-bar that is fixedly connected to the chair. This arrangement can result in increased difficulty in both placing the child in the seat and removing the child from the seat. Other seats have a T-bar that can be slideably or rotatably moved relative to the rest of the seat, allowing the T-bar to be moved away from the front of the seat when a child is being positioned or removed therefrom. A major disadvantage of this arrangement, however, is that allowing the T-bar to swing freely can result in a large amount of damage to the T-bar, especially if it is allowed to swing freely below the seat when a child is not secured therein. Furthermore, having such a movable T-bar can cause additional difficulty in storing the swing seat when not in use. For these reasons, it is desirable to have a swing seat that includes a movable component that both is movable relative to the seat and also capable of being fixed in a position away from the seat when a child is being placed in the chair or removed therefrom.
This invention provides for a children""s swing seat comprising a chair having a region for the placement of the child. A bar is rotatably coupled at one end thereof to the chair. The bar is generally in the form of a xe2x80x9cTxe2x80x9d shape and includes a longitudinal portion, which is rotatably coupled to the chair, and a transverse portion which is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal portion. A plurality of straps that are coupled to the chair are capable of engaging the transverse portion of the bar. When engaged to each other, the straps and bar secure the child in place. When the bar is uncoupled from the straps, the bar is capable of rotating away from the front portion of the seat and proximate to the bottom portion of the seat, allowing the person to quickly and easily place a child in the seat or remove the child therefrom.
It is therefore an advantage of the present invention to provide a children""s swing seat with a movable T-bar which is capable of being fixed in a position away from the front portion of the seat.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide a swing seat that includes a T-bar that is easily rotatable into and out of the engagement with straps for securing a child in place and a lower portion of the seat to prevent unnecessary movement of the T-bar while the child is being removed from the seat or placed in the seat.
Further advantages and features of the present invention will be apparent from the following specification and claims considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings illustrating preferred embodiments of the present invention.